The International Manual By Ichimura Tetsunosuke
by Contra Mundi
Summary: This is just a series of drabbles I wrote for series. It's my first ever attempt at drabbles, so I'd love to hear what you think. This takes place after Ayunee's death. Shounenai SusumuxTetsu.
1. Prologue

**A/N: ****This takes place on the day of Ayu-nee's funeral. Also, all six drabbles were written at about twelve in the morning and only took about an hour for all of them, so they might not be as good as you hoped. They are all rather short and should take only a few minutes of your time to read through them. I think maybe they're TOO short, but this is the first time I've ever written drabbles, so I hope you enjoy them. Reviews and constructive critiscm are welcomed greatly!**

_Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters from Peace Maker or Peacemaker Kurogane. I only manipulate them. AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAA!!_

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**The International Manual—by Ichimura Tetsunosuke**

The small boy looks down and makes an odd noise in his throat. "Who-o-oa..." he mutters to himself. "We're so high up! It's funny how you never notice until you're up there..."

He watches the boy slowly get his footing on the first step of the ladder passively, draping his coat around his shoulders. He looks up as the boy's head pops up over the tiles of the roof. "By the way," the boy says, "what I said this morning... I take it back, okay?"

He doesn't respond. Instead, he flings himself against the hard tiles, thinking to himself that he should be the one to take back his words. "Hey, Susumu!" the boy's red head of hair surfaces again. He would have wondered, if he had had the time, how many times the boy intended to do that. "Your sister told me to teach you all kindsa stuff, so starting tomorrow, I'm going to be your revered teacher, so you had better be ready!"

The boy grins widely. "Now, I want you to go get a good night's sleep and take a bath, 'cos there's no way in hell I'm going to go easy on you!" That said, the boy prepares to take another step down. Before the boy can leave, he calls out: "Wait!"

The boy looks peeved. "What?" he asks, sulking already. "I'm not going to start any later, even if you beg me to, you kn--"

"No. What did you call me?"

The boy looks clueless for a moment, then blushes a deep pink. Quickly, he slips down the ladder to avoid the awkwardness. He begins to think that the boy really is nothing but a little brat. "Hey!" the boy calls from below. He looks up. "I have a policy to call all my friends by their first name!" The boy sounds a little embarrased to say that.

He stares at the place where the boy had, up until now, recently been and he thinks he feels his face go slightly hot. He puts it down to lack of sleep.

"Aah! Tetsu! So that's where you've been!"

He hears a feeble whine from the boy.

"Get down! Get down right now!"

"Aaarggh!! Tatsu-nii! Don't shake it! No! Don't- GUAAAGGGGHHHH!!"

Susumu smiles to himself and decides he had better get down soon. He has no doubt that Tetsunosuke's training will require a lot of energy.


	2. Water

**Water**

Susumu opens his eyes just as Tetsunosuke sneaks into his room, a ladle full of water in his hand. He sits up in his bed, crosses his arms and glares at the boy who curses under his breath. Tetsunosuke declares that Susumu has already earned himself a D, but Susumu doesn't care. He prefers to be dry in the mornings.


	3. Duel

**Duel**

That afternoon, Tetsunosuke drags Susumu away from his room to watch a duel between Okita and Sanosuke. The fight is very intense, with Okita wielding a sword and Sanosuke, a spear. Both fighters are almost equal in skill with their respective weapons. Tetsunosuke is obviously rooting for Okita, as he is cheering him on with everyone else and is jumping up and down on the spot. Tetsunosuke takes time to stop and glares at Sususmu, odering him to join in. Susumu sighs and manages a half-hearted "Yay", though he cheers for Sanosuke just to irritate Tetsunosuke. He earns himself another D.


	4. Top

**Top**

Tetsunosuke pulls at the string, sending the top spinning expertly across the yard. He puts his hands on his hips and grin smugly. Susumu thinks that he is uselessly talented. Tetsunosuke orders him to try. Susumu sighs and closes his eyes wearily. Inexpertly, he winds the string around the top and pulls. The top spins weakly in a small circle, then stops only inches away from where it had started. Susumu twitches and Tetsunosuke tries hard not to laugh.


	5. Butterfly

**Butterfly**

Tetsunosuke takes Susumu to the edge of town to a large field filled with red and yellow flowers. Susumu wonders how the boy managed to find such a place. Tetsunosuke seems to be in his element and flings himself through the grass, sending petals flying everywhere. Susumu isn't surprised that people compare him to a puppy. He looks at the petals in the air again and is surprised to see that they are mostly butterflies. Tetsunosuke calls to him and they cahse after the butterlies until they run out of breath and have to collapse on the grass, both panting. Susumu sneaks a glance at Tetsunosuke's blissful face and he feels slightly dizzy. He decides the blood has run to his head.


	6. Kagome

**A/N: ****For some people who have never watched or read Tactics and don't**** know what the title means, I'll explain a little. **_**Kagome **_**is a Japanese ****childrens****' game. A child is made to sit in the middle of a circle of children with his/her eyes closed. At the end of the song, the person in the middle has to guess who is behind him/her. If he/she guesses right, the person behind him/her has to take his/her place in the middle and the game begins again.**

**This is the song that is sung in Japanese as well as the English translation:**

_Kagome, Kagome, __Kago__ no __naka__ Tori __wa  
Itsu, __itsu, __de yaru, __Yoake__ no ban __ni  
Tsuru__ to __Kame__ga__subetta  
Ushiro__ no __shomen__ dare?_

Kagome, Kagome, the bird in the cage,  
When will you come out?  
In the evening of the dawn,  
The crane and the turtle slipped.  
Who stands right behind you now? 

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**Kagome**

Just before dinner, Tetsunosuke manages to round up members of the Shinsengumi for a game of _kagome_. Susumu is forced to squat in the middle. He feels a bit foolish, especially since Okita will occasionally stop singing to giggle delightedly. When the song finishes, Susumu has to guess who is behind him. He grasps at the names in his head and randomly calls out Yamanami's name. There is a triumphant roar of "WRONG!" from Tetsunosuke, who cannot help but aim a kick at the rump in front of him. Susumu jumps up and chases him around the courtyard. Okita finally manages to slop laughing long enough to stop Susumu from burying Tetsunosuke alive. Susumu fails another part of his education just in time for dinner.


	7. Sleep

**Sleep**

Tetsunosuke won't allow Susumu to sleep in his own room that night. Instead, he drags him to the closet where he has already made ready two beds. He insists on taking the top bunk. Susumu makes a comment about children and high places and warns that the shelf might come crashing down on him. Tetsunosuke makes a horrible face at him. A few minutes after settling down in the rather cramped space, Susumu can already hear Tetsunosuke's even breathing. He looks up and sees the boy's hand dangling in front of him. He reaches out and gently touches it, then turns over and goes to sleep.


	8. Tea

**Tea**

Tetsunosuke is busy for nearly all the next day with his page duties. When Susumu sees him in the mid-afternoon, he is crouched over a big pool of spilled tea and is mopping it up with a cloth. Susumu suppresses a grin as he listens to Tetsunosuke swear, including some words even he hasn't heard of. When Tetsunosuke catches sight of him, he grins as though this is the best thing he has seen all day. He hands the cloth to Susumu and instructs him to squeeze it back in the cup. Susumu does so reluctantly and can barely watch as Tetsunosuke brings it to the Vice Commander. Susumu thinks he now knows why the Vice Commander always complains about Tetsunosuke's tea. That evening, he gives Tetsunosuke a cup of spilled tea. The boy does not seem to see the difference.


	9. Preparation

* * *

**Preparation**

The next day, everybody seems to be busy except Tetsunosuke. Susumu notes that the boy looks a little left out. He observes him cheer up a little as Okita stops rushing around to talk a little, then fall back into desolation as he leaves. Susumu wants to comfort him but has too much to do. He goes into his room and carefully applies his make-up, taking extra care to lengthen his eyebrows and redoing the hair on the wig to match that which his sister had done the day before she left. He feels a small ache in his heart but brushes it away. He has too much to do and he is too used to being a spy.


	10. War

**War**

Before they enter the building, Okita tells them all that they may do as they please. Susumu himself is determined to have Masuda killed. He watches with cruel amusement as the sight of him, dressed in his sister's blood-stained clothes, makes the man go pale with fear and shock. The arrival of the soldiers distracts him and the scenery is suddenly confusing. Susumu curses when he finds that Masuda has escaped. He runs past the falling bodies and the hacking soldiers. His clothes are stained with more blood, but he doesn't care. He has found Masuda in an underground room. With great sadistic pleasure, he kicks the ladder out from under his feet. He takes a blade out of the folds of his clothes and is just about to stab Masuda and put him out of his misery when he sees a flashing image of Tetsunosuke. He sighs irritably to himself. Even when he's not there, the boy still manages to irritate him. He drives the knife into the ground, inches away from Masuda's face. Instead, he proceeds to punch him in the face. He tells himself that each blow is for his sister and he continues striking him even though his knuckles are sore and bleeding.


	11. Afterward

**Afterward**

Tetsunosuke appears in front of the Masuya, out of breath and panting. Susumu watches him run around frantically; yelling out his name, then calls him to where he is. Tetsunosuke looks relieved that he isn't hurt, and then catches sight of the knife he holds in his hand. His face pales and Susumu has to tell him, irritably, that no, he did not kill Masuda. He holds up his bruised fist and Tetsunosuke looks at it with wide eyes. He grins and tells Susumu that, for what it was worth, he is glad he didn't kill the man. Susumu's face reddens slightly with embarrassment and, for lack of anything better to say, he calls Tetsunosuke and idiot.


	12. Shimabara

**Shimabara**

Susumu thinks that when Tetsunosuke said he needed a break that afternoon, he was actually indicating that it was the boy who wanted it. He sits in between Tetsunosuke and a beautiful geisha, who is daintily pouring tea into his cup. Tetsunosuke is chattering happily to the girl, Saya. There is the sound of shamisens being plucked skilfully from the room down the hall and laughter bursts from the room next to them. The entire atmosphere is almost unreal and Susumu can see why they call it _Ukiyo—_the Floating World. Across from where he is sitting, Yamanami is whispering to a geisha with light brown hair and, extraordinarily, blue eyes. She glances at him, and then looks away. Susumu thinks he saw contempt in her eyes but cannot be sure. His train of thought is broken when he feels Tetsunosuke tugging at the sleeve of his shirt. The boy invites him to play hide-and-seek with Saya and him, though it is more of an order. There is some unpleasantness over who has to be the seeker before someone suggests deciding with Rock, Paper, Scissors. Susumu wins, but Tetsunosuke demands a rematch. But the time they have to leave, they have only just decided on a seeker.


	13. Firefly

**Firefly**

Yamanami remembers that he had left something at the room back in Shimabara and tells Tetsunosuke and Susumu not to wait for him and to go back to the headquarters. Tetsunosuke nods and salutes as if taking orders, which makes Yamanami laugh. The boy grabs Susumu's hand and they take a detour. The road Tetsunosuke chose is very narrow and wild grass grows on either side and in cracks on the gravel. Susumu begins to get paranoid but finds that Tetsunosuke seems to think nothing of it. Susumu is beginning to think that Tetsunosuke thinks nothing full stop. He is caught off guard when the boy stops and he can't help but walk right into Tetsunosuke's back. Susumu is about to snap at him when the boy takes his hand away and starts clapping. Almost immediately, little lights rise up from the leaves and float around, the sound of insects humming in their ears. Susumu can do nothing but stare at the sight of the fireflies. Tetsunosuke grins smugly and laughs.


	14. Morning

**Morning**

Susumu is abruptly woken from his sleep by Tetsunosuke who comes bounding to the closet. He throws open the door of the cupboard and Susumu winces at the bright sunlight that pierces his eyes. "Guess what?" Tetsunosuke roars in his ear. Susumu groans but doesn't answer. Tetsunosuke proceeds to tell him, in a very loud overtone, that there is a festival in town and that if they don't hurry, they'll miss it. Susumu is about to tell him that he doesn't want to go to a festival when he feels himself being dragged out by the arm. Tetsunosuke drops his arm heavily and wheezes angrily at him to get up and go get changed. Susumu lies on the floor a little while longer just to irritate the boy.


	15. Festival

**Festival **

Tetsunosuke runs through the crowded streets, dragging Susumu along by the hand. Susumu cringes slightly as he earns himself a few glares from the people around him who had been nudged out of the way. He thinks that maybe being small isn't such a bad thing after all. The boy stops in front of a stall with coloured balloons and darts. He pays the man at the stall and tries to hit as many balloons as he can with his five darts. He manages to hit two and is disgusted with his prize of a bright purple comb. Tetsunosuke tells the man he wants to try again and buys more darts. Susumu is surprised when the boy hands them to him. The boy grins and Susumu can't help but feel that it is cheating, slightly. As they walk away, Tetsunosuke carrying a large bag of coloured sweets, he puts the comb in his pocket and informs Susumu that he is going to give that to Akesato so that it doesn't go to waste.


	16. Fireworks

**Fireworks**

Tetsunosuke admits that Akesato was not very courteous when she received the comb. She seemed to have been more preoccupied with sneaking angry glances at Susumu instead. He looks around. People are already milling back to their houses. He nudges Tetsunosuke in the side and tells him that they ought to be going back to the headquarters. Tetsunosuke seems more engrossed with a man putting a ladder against the geisha house and ignores him. Susumu frowns irritably and pokes him again. Without warning, Tetsunosuke grabs his hand and drags him down the road, back towards the Shinsengumi headquarters. Once there, Tetsunosuke pulls the ladder out and orders Susumu to climb it. Tetsunosuke starts up after him and in his eagerness, nearly falls off had not Susumu caught his arm. Tetsunosuke settles down eagerly and looks up at the sky expectantly. Susumu cannot see the point of this entire exercise and jumps when loud explosive noises come from overhead. Tetsunosuke makes a delighted gurgling sound.


	17. And All The Other Things Meaning Love

**Ai, Liebe, Amour and all the other words meaning "love"**

Tetsunosuke lies back against the tiles of the roof, looking up at the fireworks blissfully. The colours flash across Susumu's face, sometimes making his face look green or red. He looks up at the lights in the sky, then back at the red haired boy, who has closed his eyes. He feels his head start to reel slightly as he watches Tetsunosuke's face. He remembers the time when he came up here for after his sister's death and can't believe that so much time has passed since then. Hesitantly, he moves his face closer to the boy's and presses his mouth lightly against the latter's. His face feels like it is on fire as Tetsunosuke opens his eyes and blinks at him.

"What was that for?" he asks, clueless.

"Just a thank you," Susumu replies, embarrassed.

Tetsunosuke grins and Susumu is pleasantly surprised when he kisses him again. "You're welcome," he says smugly.

**A/N: Hmm. I broke my format. Damn. Sorry the last few drabbles weren't as good. At least I finished it? The first few were written because I got this idea in my head and couldn't get it out until I wrote it all down. From drabble 8 and onwards (from Tea), I forced myself to write more so I could complete the series. If I disappointed, I'm really sorry. I'd love to hear what you all think of this. **


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